Fatale in the Rain
by Joseph 'Maniac' Cirillo III
Summary: A spiritual sequel to 'Like Raindrops' set in the events between Max Payne 1 and Max Payne 2, femme fatale Mona Sax is requested by Vladimir Lem to assassinate a Senator.
1. Chapter 1

"Fatale in the Rain"

A Sequel to "Like Raindrops"

By Joseph "Maniac" Cirillo III

_Writer's Note: This story is based upon spoilers in the second Max Payne game as well as the first. Do not read any further if you want to keep secret what is in Max Payne 2. You've been warned…_

_I thought to myself how I could have let her die in that elevator. She was a beautiful woman, but while I was being released of my charges of a killing spree that would put me in the Guiness Book of World Records she was forever damned for my crimes. Not a minute went by when I didn't think of her. If she survived that gunshot, one could only imagine if she was thinking about me as well. Sometimes I felt that same bullet in my own head, and my thoughts of her flowed though those same dark recesses in my own mind._

Mona was back on her feet. It was months since she took a bullet for Max at the Aser plaza, but even though the wound had healed there was another wound inside her that would never heal. She had never met a man like Max before. He wasn't cold blooded like some would believe. Most people with nothing to lose would take their own lives, or be stopped if they tried to take the life of another. Not Max. She'd never admit it, not even to herself…but even though she saw Max for only a short time it left a mark on her and that mark was growing by the minute. She wanted to see him again badly. There was something about his recklessness. When she first saw him at Ragnarok where he killed Jack Lupino and about a dozen or so men armed with shotguns all alone.

It was impossible, she thought to herself. For one man to kill all those men and walk away unscarred, with only a supply of painkillers by his side. In battle, he was as if possessed by a demon. His body was a blur when the bullets started flying, he moved faster then anything she had ever seen before. It turned her on.

"On the asphalt…underneath," she was singing with her radio while she cleaned her guns out. No replicas for an assassin, she used desert Eagle point five-ohs modified to hold twelve rounds, the perfect weapon. If only she had Max's speed to go with this weapon, she would be invincible.

She sighed. It was unfair. She had a bullet in her head that still gave her nightmares. Every night she relived that gunshot in her dreams. She remembered every detail, the sterile hallway, the fanatical guards, and Max's expression when she fell in the elevator.

There was a ring on her phone, she picked it up.

"Hello Mona, dearest of all my friends. It is I, Vlad, your favorite Communist."

"Vlad, how's Max doing?"

"Is that all you can think about my dear? Since you're so interested, Max is being protected from up above by the prince of darkness himself. Do not worry about him, he will be acquitted and released within a week."

"It sounds too good to be true. What was his final body count anyway?"

"One-hundred-eighty-six. Random House is already asking for his autobiography. It's a shame he's being released so easily. I wanted an excuse to test that new Soviet-made anti-infantry tank I bought a few weeks ago."

"Would've paid money to see that." Mona changed her disposition. "Why did you call Vlad?"

"Ahh, finally we are to the point. There's this man, a senator. He's a member of the Inner Circle and they are afraid he's going to start talking in his old age."

"Alfred Woden?"

"No, Sebastian Gate."

"Big deal. Anybody could do that job. Why me?"

"Because you are the best my dear."

"The whole world thinks I'm dead Vlad, what's in it for me?"

"A million dollars cash, and I'll fix you up with your little Maxie-poo."

"Done." She hung up the phone. Someone like Sebastian Gate would be hard to get to. It would take months of planning for her to make that mark. But she had all the time in the world right now, and Max wasn't going anywhere…

**To Be Continued…**


	2. Chapter 2

"Fatale in the Rain"

Part II

By Joseph "Maniac" Cirillo III

_The following takes place a few months later after part 1, when Mona is sure she has a shot at Mr. Gate._

The gun was cold in her hands. There was no record of it anywhere, she was sure of that. Mona held her Dragonov steady, slowing her breaths so as not to throw off her shot even a millimeter. It was almost time, the unfortunate Senator Sebastian Gate was to leave his million dollar apartment complex to get to a taxpayer funded dinner for the man's next Campaign another two year's away. Each person would pay a thousand dollars just to have a meal with the man. They would be getting their refunds tonight.

Mona didn't like waiting. It was cold on the top of the book depository across the street from Gate's apartment. The money Vlad was giving her for this hit was certainly enough to make her wait forever for this man. But she knew that even Vlad was just a mouthpiece of the Inner Circle. This contract had to be the Inner Circle's doing, Vlad had no gripes with this man.

Through her scope she could see all the people in the complex who were spending the night at home. Right below the apartment, the Squeaky Cleaning Company was dutifully getting out their mops and cleaning chemicals, ready to do their job. Weird, she'd never heard of them before. Next door to Mr. Gate was what looked to be a forty year old man sharing his bed with what had to have been a girl less then half his age. She thought for a second about asking Vladimir if there was a contract out on this man too, so she could do the righteous thing for once in her life.

"Righteous, what kind of bullshit was that anyway?" she whispered to herself. Max had done what he believed was the righteous thing, killing over five hundred men overnight. Now Max was free and back on the side of the law. It was not the kind of denouement she expected to happen, but then again her being alive probably wasn't expected either.

Gate was moving. He finally got the most flattering thing he could find to wear over his hefty frame and headed downstairs to the door. His bodyguards were in plain sight, easy to move around. She could easy get off as many shots as she wanted in his head at this angle and be gone before the guards drew their pistols.

Suddenly Mona realized something wasn't right, and it wasn't that she was about to kill this man. The cleaners below Gate's apartment were gone, but they had left all their stuff. She used the Dragonov's scope to zoom in on their stuff.

"Curious…that black box isn't standard issue cleaning equipment…"

Her eyes widened when she realized the truth.

"IT'S FOR HOLDING SHOTGUN ROUNDS!"

Mona looked away from the scope rifle. It was in that moment the first time she ever hesitated a shot occurred. The moment didn't last long.

"Take the shot bitch," said a voice holding a gun to her temple. He was wearing the cleaners uniform.

"Fuck you," she said defiantly, her finger still on the trigger. Gate was in plain view outside with his guards waiting for his stretch limo. If there was a perfect shot, now was the time to take it. But obviously these guys needed her to take the shot, and then they could clean her up right afterwards. The man's gun was right at her temple, if he fired, there was no way she could survive another bullet to the head.

With a sigh she took the shot and Gate was no more. As she moved her scope off the spot, one flight up she saw a single person was looking outside his balcony had seen the whole thing. Worse than that he had seen her face plain as day!

She had to move. "If only I had Max here to help me out," she thought to herself. Time slowed down as she thought of him, one man on the breaking point of pain and horror. One man on the edge of his life with nothing to lose, she felt herself in that same position, with nothing to lose. Suddenly, her head started pounding slow and loud. Every second the beat got louder and her concentration picked up. She could feel things moving slower around her, her adrenaline was pumping like crazy, she had to get out of there.

As fast as she could (which was faster then she thought) she moved her head away from the cleaner's gun and drew her desert eagle. Without flinching, she fired two shots into the man's head, he dropped. Suddenly her head stopped throbbing and everything slid back into normal. What the hell had just happened to her?

She threw the rifle into the heating pipe expecting it to be destroyed in a matter of minutes. She ran to the bottom floor of the book depository and into the street. The witness was right in front of her, he must've run down to the street to call for the police to catch her. But now he was right in front of her, frozen with fear. She couldn't stay any longer, she had to run.

Out of nowhere came more cleaners, at least thirty of them armed with automatic weapons. She turned in the direction opposite the cleaners. Right when she was about to run away she saw a figure step out of the shadows in front of her.

He had a familiar voice.

"Mona, dearest of all my friends..."

"Vlad, you bastard."

**To be Concluded…**


	3. Chapter 3

"Fatale in the Rain"

Part 3

By Joseph "Maniac" Cirillo III

_Disclaimer: This story is intended for a mature audience. Reader discretion is advised._

_"And now, ladies and gentlemen I'm pleased to play the number one requested song of the day, by Poets of the Fall, this is "The Late Goodbye"."_

For what seemed like an eternity, Mona just stood there in front of Vladimir, both of them holding their guns to each other's head. The cleaners were all around the both of them, pointing their automatic weapons at Mona. They were locked in a stalemate. The sound of the radio playing out of someone's abandoned car was the only noise made on the street. The witness had run from the scene and was watched the events unfolding from afar.

"And you'd set me up with my little Maxie-poo. Vlad you really are a dick."

"I knew you'd see it my way, my dear."

"Why are you doing this Vlad?"

"Because I can! This is my time, this is my calling. Alfred Woden isn't going to live for much longer, I told him that kinky sex would finally catch up to him. Opportunity knocks at my door to take what is his. Its fate for me to be here, just as it is fate for you to be here. This is my opportunity to finally be the one playing the game of chess instead of just being another one of his fucking pawns! You are a pawn, just like me my dear."

"I am nobody's pawn."

"Oh you think that. But you were so willing to do the job I sent you to do tonight."

"A job's a job. You offered me money."

"Oh there's money. More money then you could ever imagine. I could never kill you baby. Join me and all will be forgiven. Be my Queen and I will be the King."

Mona wasn't stupid. She knew she had no reason to trust Vlad now. This wasn't black and white anymore. Like Max said to her at the bar, none of us were angels. There were shades of gray, but Vlad wasn't any shade of gray. He was already on the dark side. Mona started to hear her head throb again, like she had up on the roof of the book depository. She had feelings for Max she wasn't willing to admit, she wanted to be with him.

"Why did you want Gate dead?"

"What do you care? He was sided with Woden, he was going to tell him about my little insurrection. If Woden knew about it before I made my move, I would be taking a dirt nap right now. I just needed to have all the blame to go to you, that way Woden would never suspect until it was too late."

Instinctively Mona shot Vlad in the arm. The bullet went right through flesh and bone, spilling blood out. Having lost control of his arm, Vlad dropped his gun.

"See, you're nothing but a one armed bandit."

"Kill her you idiots! Mr. Kauffman, do your job!"

The biggest cleaner raised his gun in slow motion, she could see every muscle in the man's arm flex in slow motion as he raised it up to his chest. Mona's instincts kicked in, the cleaners were ready to pull the triggers on their weapons. Without thinking, she dove out of the situation. Every shot the entire group of cleaners fired at her missed. The bullets' trails whizzed by her with perfect clarity.

"Shoot her you dumb bastards!" screamed Vlad. "The police will be on their way soon!"

Mona got up, drew her two desert eagles and started shooting at the cleaners, aiming for their hearts or for their heads. There was an entire army of them, at least ten in front of her, probably more waiting in the back, probably more protecting Vlad. She could hear the sirens in the background. This was not a fight she could win.

"Get her!" screamed a cleaner in front of her. Mona shot the man in the head and he fell quickly, his body turning to that of a rag doll.

She kept moving. She couldn't explain what was happening to her own body during this firefight. She remarkably hadn't been shot yet. At sudden times her head would start throbbing again and when it did, instead of hindering her abilities it sharpened them. It was like she was able to dodge right out of the path of the bullets when they were fired at her. This was all too unreal to her. The more men she killed, the slower and slower time got, her abilities got sharper and sharper. This couldn't be shell shock, this must've been what Max used to survive the Lupino firefight. She didn't have time to think about how Max's abilities had apparently rubbed off on her, she had to save her own ass right now!

"Can't you fucking shoot her!" screamed Kauffman.

"She's too fast!" screamed one of his henchmen. The sirens were getting louder. The police would arrive in less then thirty seconds.

"Damn it! Everyone pull back!" shouted Vlad. "We can't be here when the pigs arrive! Just leave her, if the cops don't arrest her by the time they arrive we'll just kill her later!" The cleaners started pulling back, leaving Mona in a corner. She had to make a run for it.

She summoned all the focus she had left and made a break for it. The bullets couldn't catch up to her, she ran faster then a fox would run from a hound. She had to get out of there, now that Vlad had gotten greedy, he would be after Max too. She had to get out of there to warn Max.

"Damn it, hold your fire, everybody out!" ordered Vlad as he got into his stretch limo. He smiled at Mona just before his car peeled off.

"Don't worry my dear. I'll take good care of you and Max later." His car then sped away like it was pulled by a pack of demons.

Mona finally made it away from the crime scene, but she still knew she wasn't safe. That guy at the scene had seen her face, she was a wanted felon now. She needed to see Max, to tell him that their lives were both in danger now. The police bands she overheard near the scene said Max was now investigating a disturbance at one of Vlad's warehouses. She gave a weak smile. Now she had a reason to pay Max a visit.

_Terror in the city today as Republican Senator Sebastian Gate was found assassinated just outside his expensive upper west side apartment complex. The only witness to the assassination gave a detailed description of a woman of a slim build around five foot eleven with shoulder length wavy black hair. The police have put out an APB on this yet unidentified woman and all citizens are asked to inform the police with any information as to this unknown woman's whereabouts. She is considered armed and extremely dangerous. For NYCNN, this is Kyra Silver._

**The End**


End file.
